The Department of Anthropology offers a balanced and flexible program of academic courses and research in cultural anthropology, linguistic anthropology, archaeology and biological anthropology. Anthropology contributes to an understanding of the complex problems of human behavior, biology, language, cultural and social organization, and the relationship of humans to their environments. Research carried out in the field, laboratory and library emphasizes past and present modes of living and the origins and distribution of peoples and cultures throughout the world. Although special attention is given to the circumpolar North, faculty also maintain active research programs elsewhere, such as Africa and North America.